Constable back on beat despite attack

MARYANNE TWENTYMAN

Last updated 13:28 26/11/2012

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A police constable will be back on the beat this afternoon despite being attacked by a man at the Whitianga Police Station yesterday.

Senior Sergeant Graham Shields of Thames Police confirmed the young constable had been involved in an altercation with a man who had earlier been arrested on charges of domestic violence and threatening to kill.

‘‘The constable had been called to a domestic incident down at the beach about 8am where he arrested a man and took him back to the cells at the Whitianga station,’’ Mr Shields said.

‘‘[The constable] opened the door of the cell to allow the man to phone a lawyer which is when the man pushed past him out into the station where the altercation took place.’’

A local businessman, who asked not be named, was out walking his dog when he heard someone calling for help.

‘‘It was just a voice, it actually sounded like someone trapped in a car or something so I went and had a look,’’ the man said.

‘‘A guy came running past me, I didn’t think a lot of it but I kept walking and found the policeman leaning on the rail of the ramp outside the Police station, he was really angry and he’d clearly been thumped in the head.’’

‘‘I actually wish I’d got their sooner because I would have dealt to the guy myself, the cops do a good job and they don’t deserve that,’’ he said.

Mr Shields said the ‘‘highly intoxicated’’ offender was arrested a few hours after his escape from custody and said it served as a reminder that it was difficult to get away with such incidents in a small town.

‘‘Everyone knows each other, the guy got nothing out of it accept for a possible jail term,’’ he said.

A 24-year-old builder from Helensville was due to appear in the Hamilton District Court today facing charges of threatening to kill, two charges of assaulting a female, escaping custody and assaulting police.